Hobbits could swing this year's general election

Srðja Popovic is executive director and cofounder of the Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (Canvas) and author of Blueprint for Revolution (Scribe)

Tori Porell is a programme officer at Canvas and works on social justice issues around the world

This article was taken from the May 2015 issue of WIRED magazine. Be the first to read WIRED's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by subscribing online.

Advertisement

This year, the future direction of Greece was partly decided by a group of largely uneducated middle-aged women who were laid off from their government cleaning jobs. After the powers that be canned these jobs as part of the deal struck with Greece's creditors, the cleaners camped outside the ministry where they used to work and staged demonstrations, adopting the red rubber cleaning glove as their symbol.

The fight that these women took on was about more than their former positions; their situation resonated with people all over the country who had felt the sting of austerity and lost confidence in their political leaders. It's no surprise that Syriza, the up-and-coming leftist party in Greece, latched on to the cause of these women and supported them. Now, after its win in the national elections, complete with promises to lead the country in a new direction, Syriza may just have the rubber glove rebellion to thank.

This is just one example of how unlikely political players are making headlines and shaking up the world. To put it another way, hobbits are taking over mainstream politics.

Today's hobbits, similar to Tolkien's improbable heroes, come from marginalised populations that are not usually represented in political dialogue. However, through non-violent social change and civil disobedience they have succeeded in making their voices heard. This shift seems to be a natural response to the inefficiency, lack of credibility and unresponsiveness of the existing political players. What remains to be seen is if this analogy will persist and these hobbits will enjoy the same victories as their fictional namesakes.

Advertisement

Another group of political outsiders to make the headlines in the past year were those who took part in the so-called Umbrella Revolution. Historically known for its financial security and political stability, Hong Kong seemed an unlikely host for massive street protests and an occupation that lasted weeks. But students and other pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong dominated the news and set their small territory on a path towards political progress. They even managed to put their own culturally sensitive spin on the protests, making sure that the streets remained pristine and staying on top of their school work while occupying their university.

These unlikely political players are not an altogether new phenomenon -- many other great non-violent struggles in history were led by hobbits. Take the American civil rights movement in the 50s and 60s. Martin Luther King Jr was not always regarded as the historical change maker that he is today. He began as a small-town pastor; his arrest sheet hit double figures; he was even labelled a terrorist by some US government agencies. He seemed an unlikely political leader, yet he became one of the most iconic figures of non-violent struggle.

As May 7 looms for the UK's general election, it's important not to forget that it is very often the little people who shape history. These contemporary hobbits have more than proven that they are able to shake up the world of mainstream politics. We will have to wait until next month to find out if they can reshape Britain's for real.

This article was first published in the May 2015 issue of WIRED magazine